India and Sri Lanka are on the verge of taking the initial steps towards the construction of a land connectivity corridor between the two South Asian nations, New Delhi's ambassador to Colombo said on Monday.
"I would say the land connectivity corridor is the most ambitious and also the most impactful initiative in terms of potential. We are now taking the first steps to translate this game-changing initiative into real action on the ground," Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Santos Jha, was quoted as saying by the Lankan media outlet.
The idea of building a bridge connecting India's Rameswaram island in Tamil Nadu with Talaimannar village in Mannar located in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka has been backed by Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe.
During his visit to New Delhi last month, Wickremesinghe urged Indian authorities to link the two countries through a land route.
"Once built, this connectivity corridor will transform our relations, epitomize our unbreakable partnership, and possibly uplift vast populations that it will connect, into a new era of growth and prosperity. A small business, say for instance a local women’s group manufacturing palmyra baskets- can load the produce in a small lorry, drive down for 30-40 kms and will have access to a market of 1.4 bn people," the Indian envoy added.